Worship: Are We for Real?
By Glenn M. Plastina
(This article appeared in Baguio Herald February-March 2005 Special Edition)
If worship is all about God, why is the body of Christ still waging war on worship? Worship is supposed to be all about God, but in most cases, worship is actually not all about God. It is also about cultural differences, personal preferences, and varied interpretation of the Scriptures in matters of worship and practice. Worship became a major source of disunity among local churches—not to mention that it is also an indicator to discriminate others who do worship differently. The fact is, only Christians fight over worship. Churches were divided, disheartened, and disillusioned that their own way of worship is the best way in adoring God. Sometimes, it is easy to throw stones than offer bread in worship wars. But it should not be. Let’s be real this time.
God is seeking true worshipers. If we are for real, then we must understand that worship is not about warring between Evangelicals and Pentecostals, traditional and radicals, brothers and sisters, young and old. True worshipers seek, understand, and practice the truth found in God. I believe mature worshipers have high tolerance level when it comes to differences in worship styles. Some contemporary worshipers ridicule those who do traditional worship, unaware that they themselves are creating a tradition for the future. While tradition is not evil, when it becomes an end in itself, it fell short to what true worship is all about. True worship—in all its primitive and modern ways—can be glorifying God. It is not static, but dynamic.
We must remember that there are many words used in the Bible for worship. Each word—in Hebrew or Greek—bears significant distinction and manifestation from bowing to prostrating and falling flat to the ground, kneeling, dancing, singing, shouting, jumping, whispering, silence, and the like. To look for one way of worship in the Bible is to look for ridiculousness. Why? Precisely, it is because worship is more than just a style. While people do worship in various manners, it is more than outward appearance.
Worship is the utmost response of the whole person to the revealed presence of God. In the Bible, when the person is overwhelmed with the presence of God, style is not an issue anymore. What matters now is the heart before the holy God. It is not about what type of song we sing, even though worship involves singing also. Certainly, the Bible tells that songs for worship are diverse (Eph 5:19). Hence, worshiping God is, indeed, dynamic. If we insist that the way the Western world do worship is the superior—or perhaps the best—way, we deprived ourselves of worshiping God for real. We try to mimic others who we are not. This is not to say also that we are to disregard and reject what the West brought to us, but it is for us to seek for more meaningful way of worshiping God. It is still great to worship God and sing with our own native languages—even in native melody!
I’m also concerned with the prevailing attitude on worship we have here in the Philippines. Filipinos are very particular with experience. And yet, when many of us became Christians, it seems that worship becomes an abstract idea. It is akin to becoming a “thing” in the mind; it has lost its personal and intimate touch. When worship becomes a matter of the mind, a mere idea, or a concept, then it is long way off from being Christian. There is more indication in the Scriptures that worship is more personal and intimate—though not individualistic; worship is not just a thing that happens between and person and an abstract idea from above. There is even more support to the physical involvement of the body in the biblical worship. Hence, worship involves “heart and hand” so to speak. It is not just lip service. We need to regain our heritage in worshiping through the cultural gifts that God has bestowed to our local churches.
I do not subscribe to the notion that worship is more of what we do rather than what we explain. While it is true that we cannot fathom the mystery involved in Christian worship—for God is the mystery of the world—it is healthy for us to understand why and how we do worship. The content of our worship must not be separated from our practice. Both are essential. Of course, worship is not just what comes from our mouth, we should worship because it is an outflow of our hearts; not because we are obliged, but it is our delight to commune with God.
I’m proud to be a Filipino Christian for God has given us rich cultures. I don’t think that being a Filipino and a Christian is a conflict—being a Christian is not even in contrast to be a contemporary person. As a Filipino, I can worship God in diverse and dynamic ways. As long as we find way to redeem our cultural identity and heritage—in music, arts, language, etc.—we can be authentic Christians. The more I stay in the Cordilleras, the more I appreciate the unique and distinct cultural values that can promote authentic Christianity in this particular setting. Even in our Music for a New Generation ministry, we encourage new Christian artists to excel in modern and relevant way of reaching the youth, as well as for some to blend the ethnic elements of Cordilleran music for God’s glory.
John 4:23 says, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” It is long overdue. When are we going to learn that the true worshipers do not need to dwell in what has been given by others, but to cultivate our vernacular songs of worship, customs, way of communicating the Gospel, and cultural heritage? When are we going to realize that our ultimate destiny is to worship God forever with other fellow Christians who do not even practice the way we do worship in local churches? You and I are going towards that eternal celebration of God’s presence. Thank God. We are destined to worship him forever as a family.
With that hope, our past and present worship experiences become more exciting and meaningful. Yes, worship in heaven is a celebration! Are we not then to celebrate his presence? Celebration can be reverential as long as we have the right heart and spirit to come before God as his children. As children are not pretentious before their father, we can be real before God.
(This article appeared in Baguio Herald February-March 2005 Special Edition)
If worship is all about God, why is the body of Christ still waging war on worship? Worship is supposed to be all about God, but in most cases, worship is actually not all about God. It is also about cultural differences, personal preferences, and varied interpretation of the Scriptures in matters of worship and practice. Worship became a major source of disunity among local churches—not to mention that it is also an indicator to discriminate others who do worship differently. The fact is, only Christians fight over worship. Churches were divided, disheartened, and disillusioned that their own way of worship is the best way in adoring God. Sometimes, it is easy to throw stones than offer bread in worship wars. But it should not be. Let’s be real this time.
God is seeking true worshipers. If we are for real, then we must understand that worship is not about warring between Evangelicals and Pentecostals, traditional and radicals, brothers and sisters, young and old. True worshipers seek, understand, and practice the truth found in God. I believe mature worshipers have high tolerance level when it comes to differences in worship styles. Some contemporary worshipers ridicule those who do traditional worship, unaware that they themselves are creating a tradition for the future. While tradition is not evil, when it becomes an end in itself, it fell short to what true worship is all about. True worship—in all its primitive and modern ways—can be glorifying God. It is not static, but dynamic.
We must remember that there are many words used in the Bible for worship. Each word—in Hebrew or Greek—bears significant distinction and manifestation from bowing to prostrating and falling flat to the ground, kneeling, dancing, singing, shouting, jumping, whispering, silence, and the like. To look for one way of worship in the Bible is to look for ridiculousness. Why? Precisely, it is because worship is more than just a style. While people do worship in various manners, it is more than outward appearance.
Worship is the utmost response of the whole person to the revealed presence of God. In the Bible, when the person is overwhelmed with the presence of God, style is not an issue anymore. What matters now is the heart before the holy God. It is not about what type of song we sing, even though worship involves singing also. Certainly, the Bible tells that songs for worship are diverse (Eph 5:19). Hence, worshiping God is, indeed, dynamic. If we insist that the way the Western world do worship is the superior—or perhaps the best—way, we deprived ourselves of worshiping God for real. We try to mimic others who we are not. This is not to say also that we are to disregard and reject what the West brought to us, but it is for us to seek for more meaningful way of worshiping God. It is still great to worship God and sing with our own native languages—even in native melody!
I’m also concerned with the prevailing attitude on worship we have here in the Philippines. Filipinos are very particular with experience. And yet, when many of us became Christians, it seems that worship becomes an abstract idea. It is akin to becoming a “thing” in the mind; it has lost its personal and intimate touch. When worship becomes a matter of the mind, a mere idea, or a concept, then it is long way off from being Christian. There is more indication in the Scriptures that worship is more personal and intimate—though not individualistic; worship is not just a thing that happens between and person and an abstract idea from above. There is even more support to the physical involvement of the body in the biblical worship. Hence, worship involves “heart and hand” so to speak. It is not just lip service. We need to regain our heritage in worshiping through the cultural gifts that God has bestowed to our local churches.
I do not subscribe to the notion that worship is more of what we do rather than what we explain. While it is true that we cannot fathom the mystery involved in Christian worship—for God is the mystery of the world—it is healthy for us to understand why and how we do worship. The content of our worship must not be separated from our practice. Both are essential. Of course, worship is not just what comes from our mouth, we should worship because it is an outflow of our hearts; not because we are obliged, but it is our delight to commune with God.
I’m proud to be a Filipino Christian for God has given us rich cultures. I don’t think that being a Filipino and a Christian is a conflict—being a Christian is not even in contrast to be a contemporary person. As a Filipino, I can worship God in diverse and dynamic ways. As long as we find way to redeem our cultural identity and heritage—in music, arts, language, etc.—we can be authentic Christians. The more I stay in the Cordilleras, the more I appreciate the unique and distinct cultural values that can promote authentic Christianity in this particular setting. Even in our Music for a New Generation ministry, we encourage new Christian artists to excel in modern and relevant way of reaching the youth, as well as for some to blend the ethnic elements of Cordilleran music for God’s glory.
John 4:23 says, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” It is long overdue. When are we going to learn that the true worshipers do not need to dwell in what has been given by others, but to cultivate our vernacular songs of worship, customs, way of communicating the Gospel, and cultural heritage? When are we going to realize that our ultimate destiny is to worship God forever with other fellow Christians who do not even practice the way we do worship in local churches? You and I are going towards that eternal celebration of God’s presence. Thank God. We are destined to worship him forever as a family.
With that hope, our past and present worship experiences become more exciting and meaningful. Yes, worship in heaven is a celebration! Are we not then to celebrate his presence? Celebration can be reverential as long as we have the right heart and spirit to come before God as his children. As children are not pretentious before their father, we can be real before God.
posted by GlenPlas @ 11:09 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home